When I first learned that the whole low-fat campaign was pretty much a hoax I was absolutely shocked as well. For years I was right there on that bandwagon bingeing on everything from low-fat Snackwells cookies to fat-free flavored yogurt to low-fat ice cream. And as it turns out, according to Michael Pollan, “We’ve gotten fat on low-fat products.”
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Here’s a direct quote from Pollan’s book Food Rules that explains it all:
The forty-year-old campaign to create low-fat and nonfat versions of traditional foods has been a failure: We’ve gotten fat on low-fat products. Why? Because removing the fat from foods doesn’t necessarily make them nonfattening. Carbohydrates can also make you fat, and many low- and nonfat foods boost the sugars to make up for the loss of flavor … You’re better off eating the real thing in moderation than bingeing on “lite” food products packed with sugars and salt.
Another New York Times bestselling author, Mark Bittman, agrees in his book Food Matters. He says, “The low-fat craze caused millions, maybe tens of millions, of Americans actually to gain weight, because they were reaching for ‘low-fat’ but high-calorie carbs.” And right on cue directly from Pollan’s In Defense of Food:
At this point you’re probably saying to yourself, Hold on just a minute. Are you really saying the whole low-fat deal was bogus? But my supermarket is still packed with low-fat this and no-cholesterol that! My doctor is still on me about my cholesterol and telling me to switch to low-fat everything. I was flabbergasted at the news too, because no one in charge – not in government, not in the public health community – has dared to come out and announce: Um, you know everything we’ve been telling you for the last thirty years about the links between dietary fat and heart disease? And fat and cancer? And fat and fat? Well, this just in: It now appears that none of it was true. We sincerely regret the error.
So let’s put the low-fat craze behind us and move forward by embracing the right portions of real food and real food only. No more faked low-fat products where according to Pollan, “fats in things like sour cream and yogurt are replaced with hydrogenated oils” and “the cream in ‘whipped cream’ and ‘coffee creamer’ are replaced with corn starch.”
And just to be clear this applies to all reduced fat products, including milk. When the fat is removed from dairy products like milk some of the beneficial nutrients are lost with the fat as well. We just recently switched to whole milk ourselves, and I was honestly a little scared. I drank skim milk up until last year after all! But along with reducing our overall consumption of milk it has actually been a surprisingly smooth transition for us. And after learning the shocking truth behind what we’ve been told for so many years…I’ve never looked at another low-fat product the same again.
Dana says
I recommend the book Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocratss by Sally Fallon to any one interested into looking into this further....the idea that fats are good for you! It will change the way you think!
KristyC says
We are already doing this, except for the milk. I have just switched from organic (sorta - Horizons & Stonyfield) skim to a "light" local, non-homogenized milk. My boys don't like it, but I am going to stick it out. I don't think I can get them to switch to whole milk, yet. Love the challenges. We haven't been able to complete them yet, but the trying is certainly making a big differerence in our diets.
Wendi says
I'm in and have been off those sorts of food for so long that I can't remember the last time I had any. My only thing is the milk and that's super easy to switch.
Julie says
My family of three has been doing this for quite some time .... except for the milk. Never occurred to me. We'll make the change tomorrow.
Grace says
I'll be doing this by myself! Thanks for the info!
Kim B. says
I jumped on this band wagon after reading "Real Food" by NINA PLANCK. GREAT book!! Brought me back to looking at food as how God intended us to eat it vs man. Really enjoying your blog!
Lisa says
Tania,
I have been successfully making homemade whole milk yogurt for a while now, and I have no problems with thickness (and I don't add gelatin or pectin). I heat the milk to 185 degrees and hold it there for 30 minutes, the longer you hold it there, the thicker your yogurt will be. I allow the milk to cool down to 110-115 degrees, add culture to 2 cups of it, and then whisk that in to the whole batch. I put in jars and allow it to culture for 8-12 hours in my oven with the light on. The longer it cultures, the stronger the flavor, but it's also thicker. I use a digital probe thermometer in my oven to determine the temperature, and it stays around 104 degrees.
Beth G. says
We're in! 2 adults for the week. I notice a lot of people said they can't find whole milk yogurt- I found plain whole milk yogurt made by Stoneyfield Farms. I just bought it at our regular grocery store- Kroger. Good luck everyone!!
Jude says
I am in! But I can't give up my Chobani Greek Yogurt, so 99% in!!!
Alexis says
2 adults and 3 children. We have always done this; guess I never bought into the whole low-fat being better for you bit.
Carisa says
A friend bought me full fat yogurts when I came home with my newborn. She said that I needed the fat for breastfeeding. I lived on those yogurts for a month and LOVED them!
Jean says
2 adults. Just started this after reading Gary Taubes' "Why We Get Fat and What to do About It." I feel great and my refrigerator is filled with eggs, full-fat dairy, fresh meat from my local butcher and lots of fresh vegetables. Sometimes eating out is a challenge, but I know exactly what I'm getting when I eat at home.
Kari says
Already doing this one...two adults and three children!
Gail says
Count me in. 1 adult. Salad dressing is going to be the hardest, since I've come to rely on the fat-free versions, but I've been promising myself I'll give them up for some time, now. So this will be the catalyst.
For those of you concerned about consuming full-fat milk, there is a theory that our bodies cannot absorb the fat from unhomogenized milk (it's the homogenization process that breaks the fat down and allows it to be absorbed), so if you have a source of that, give it a try.
Ellen says
Except for milk,(2% organic), I never was one to buy the non fat, low fat, lite mumbo. I will print out this challange and pass it out at work. Im on the "Wellness" committee and have tried to educate everyone using the Pledges but with little success. In the meantime, Im loosing weight,as well as my husband and son,we feel great. In the meantime those at work moan and complain that nothing is working and continue to buy low fat, lite and fat free junk.
100 Days of Real Food says
Thank you for trying to spread the word...don't give up!
Jennifer says
my family is in! we love fats! :) family of 5.
JaniceT says
We are in: 2 Adults & 1 Teen. I switched from low fat products a while ago. The local farm I get my milk from only sells whole milk. My teen has never noticed the "lite" items are missing from the fridge and I use local butter. We haven't used margarine in quite a while. I have trouble sometimes finding whole milk plain yogurt but I try another store or go without until I find some. I have made homemade yogurt from my farm milk a few times too.
Beth says
We've been doing this for years. Low-fat usually has a high sugar count. I'm also as sugar free as possible. I try and keep my sugar under 15 grams a day with non of that fake sugar going in me!
Katherine says
2 adults. I don't buy that stuff so neither of us eats it. He still prefers skim milk, but the rest is the real deal.
Michelle @ Turning Over a New Leaf says
I'm in! I recently started buying whole milk yogurt after my recent trip to Europe where NO DAIRY was "low fat" or "fat free." Eating pure, full-fat, plain yogurt with muesli topped with nuts, seeds, dried fruit, and oranges was rather freeing! And I actually lost weight on that trip...
I have this theory that the reason my LDL levels were ridiculously low (less than 45) and my HDLs were less than ideal (56) was because I was eating very little saturated fat, which raises both LDL and HDL. Since polyunsaturated fats decrease BOTH types of cholesterol, and I was eating plenty of polyunsaturated fat (and monounsaturated, but obviously not enough to counteract the decreasing action of the poly), it would stand to reason that switching to full-fat yogurt and milk (which were really the only "reduced fat" anything I ate, and even those I only consume on a occasional/moderate basis) would increase my good HDLs, and my LDLs would still remain in a healthy range. I think people need to realize that saturated fats play an important role in cholesterol balance and other bodily functions. We're still trained to believe that saturated fat is of the devil and should be avoided, but I do think it's possible, and common, to get too little.
ReignbowTracer says
"realize that saturated fats play an important role in cholesterol balance and other bodily functions."
Great info Michelle, as I learned several years ago that the "fats" are very important in maintaining a healthy neurological system. Makes you wonder if there's a causal effect related to the increase in neuro problems evidenced in the last couple of decades.
Shannon Baukhages says
I fell in love with full fat yoghurt on a trip to Europe, too. Greece (about 8 years ago), actually, and I was so excited when I began seeing Greek style yoghurt in stores here.
Jennifer Blanton says
2 adults, 1 child. We already do this one :-) I put in an order to Lakeview Farms for milk a month ago, but apparently they don't deliver to Mint Hill at this time. I wish I could find an option that wasn't ultra-pasteurized.
sheri says
we're in...2 adults and 3 kids! after losing weight eating tons of "lite" and "low-fat" options (along with increasing my fruit and vegetable intake, duh!), it dawned on me that i may have lost weight, but it was due to other life-style changes and not the high priced, chemical-filled products i had been duped into believing were working! i would now rather put the "real" food in my body (including full fat milk, butter, sour cream, etc) and feel like my body knows what to do with it...rather than the chemicals that confuse my brain and metabolism!
sara says
Great one! my family of five is in :)
Jennifer says
We already do this one!
Family of three...two adults and one child
Cécy says
I'm going to fail this one. I wanted whole fat yogurt, but couldn't find it this week at EF so I'm going to have to do with the low fat from stonyfield. The rest will be real fat however.
100 Days of Real Food says
doing this one 99% of the way is better than most! :)
JenMom says
We're in, except for the milk. My son can't tolerate full fat milk, so he drinks 2%.
Brandi says
Two adults and two kids all the way, we've already been doing this so not a problem! I too was shocked to see the difference real foods make! I was so scared to give up my low-fat/fat free stuff. However, one month into real foods and I've lost 5 lbs!
Andrea says
What made you switch from 2% (from your other milk post) to whole? Just curious ;)
I switched to whole milk awhile back and just make sure my kids only drink 2 cups a day (only with meals, not all day in a sippy like we used to). My husband and I drink so little milk that it wasn't a big deal to either of us.
100 Days of Real Food says
We recently switched to whole milk after learning more about how the good nutrients are stripped away when the fat is removed. I was a little worried about making the switch at first, but the transition has been very smooth!
aj says
this one should be easy. 2 adults and 3 children are going to do this weeks pledge.
Danyelle says
Already doing this too...friends and family think it is crazy! The gasp at whole milk and real half n half...you eat less because fat is satisfying!
Christie Michie says
One adult, and probably entire family...another adult and three kiddos under six.
Joni says
I am so excited to see this post! We watched the documentary 'Fat Head' on Netflix about a month ago, and I was completely shocked. Right after that we stopped buying low-fat yogurt, cottage cheese, milk, etc. (we had already stopped all the low fat 'packaged' junk about a year ago and then pretty much anything packaged a few months ago). I was so curious about your opinion on this. By the way it was interesting to hear all the research on saturated fat as well - I wonder what you think about that too but I think that becomes a personal opinion/preference :) Thanks so much for sharing this!
Joy Manning says
Bravo Lisa!!! This is a terrific one! I'm IN.
Andrea says
Two adults and one child all week. Agree with this wholeheartedly!
Tania says
I make my own yogurt now using this recipe: http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2008/10/you-can-make-yogurt-in-your-crockpot.html
It's a little "soupy", but great for smoothies!
janet says
Tania,
If you want to thicken up your yogurt, place it in a colander, lined with cheesecloth or a clean piece of fabric, and let the whey drain out of it. I leave it in the fridge overnight and then add back in a bit of the whey until the yogurt is the consistency I want.
Tania says
Awesome, thanks, Janet!
Sarah says
I've used that recipe many times...I just use a coffee filter or two in place of cheesecloth or fabric. It's a lot cleaner and can be composted!
Mo says
On Day 68 of the 100 days of real foods...so we stopped eating the low-fat/non-fat awhile ago. It's amazing when reading all of these products what really goes into it...and then travels into our bodies. I'll start to try the whole milk though...that I haven't switched.
Amy says
We're in!! It's our first challenge!! I hope you come around and re-do these mini-challenges again and again!
Family of 4, 2 adults, 2 small children. I can't think of anything in our house that's not full fat except milk. I personally love whole milk, but usually buy 1 or 2%. Will give full fat a whirl. One of our children doesn't exactly drink milk in moderation. In the past when we've had whole milk in the house, she likes it so much she keeps asking for more. She's a skinny little thing, so I think it should be alright.
Amy says
Oh, quick question - are the health benefits of whole milk negated when purchasing ultra-pastuerized? I can't find organic milk done any other way, and raw is not a good fit for our family at this time.
Taryn says
Have been successfully doing this one for months!
LauraElle says
So we have to switch to whole milk to do this pledge?
Paula says
Already doing this one :)